Ford and Intel Mobii: the Cockpit of the Future

Ford and Intel have teamed up to create a new vision for the automotive cockpit dubbed Mobii. The prototype system combines interior cameras with other sensors, along with the driver’s behavioral patterns, to improve the driving experience. It can detect who is driving the car, help the driver or passenger interact with the vehicle’s systems, and even allow remote monitoring of the vehicle.

Mobii allows you to view the interior of the car via a mobile app on your smartphone (which might be handy if you’re the parent of a teenage driver). It also uses facial recognition to identify the driver, then personalizes the car to that driver’s preferences. Of course, many manufacturers do that already by tying it to the key fob, which also has the advantage of moving the seat to the preferred position before you try to get in.

One aspect of the facial recognition feature that we think has a lot of potential is that the car won’t start for unrecognized drivers, providing a much more advanced form of authentication besides a key fob. Instead, when an unrecognized person enters the driver’s seat, the system will send that person’s picture to the vehicle owner for approval and the owner can limit the driver’s use of the car.

We’ll keep an eye on Mobii as Ford and Intel continue collaborating on its development. It will be interesting to see if any of these ideas begin appearing in Ford vehicles in the coming years.